Are Instagram hashtags still relevant?
I often get asked whether it’s important to still include hashtags in your content…
What type of hashtags should you use in your posts?
Do they help or are they a waste of time?
The short answer is YES! You should still be using hashtags.
Why?
Because hashtags help your content be discovered by NEW people who aren’t following you and so help to increase your brand’s reach and awareness.
Even ONE new person per post is a GOOD thing right?
Ok, hashtags are probably not going to shoot the lights out in terms of getting you lots more engagement of followers but the way I see it?
Every little bit helps and it’s better to include them than to not use them at all.
Ok, so how do you know if your hashtags are actually working?
Easy! On Instagram, you can click on “View Insights” below your post and scroll down to see how many impressions you got from the hashtags you used. Like this:
Look for the posts that got the most impressions from hashtags and save that hashtag combo as that’s likely a good one for your brand.
How do I know which hashtags to use?
It’s best to use a combination of hashtags that are relevant to your target market and industry.
DON’T
👎Use hashtags that are too broad e.g. #love
👎Use hashtags that aren’t related to your biz
👎Use hashtags as words in your copy e.g. Recent #workshop for #smallbusinesses went so well.
DO
👍Use medium-competition hashtags that aren’t too niche or too broad
👍Save groups of hashtags for efficiency
👍Research the best hashtags to use for your business.
My team and I discovered a really cool tool called Flick which we used to research, saved and analyze our hashtags. I find it so much easier and more effective than ‘guessing’ which hashtags to include.
If you want to take a look, I’ve recorded a little tour here for you.
If you want to try it out, you can use my affiliate link to get 10% off your first month’s subscription.
So, in summary, keep incorporating hashtags into your content strategy - they won’t hurt and, if anything, will generate more impressions from people who don’t yet know your brand.
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